Policy & Regulations

This channel includes news coverage of healthcare policy and regulations set by Congress, the states, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and medical associations and societies. 

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Air ambulances charge astronomical prices

Emergency services are well known for charging high prices, often leaving patients on the hook for sky-high medical bills when those services are billed out of network. In particular, patients with private insurance face far higher charges for air ambulance compared to Medicare rates, according to a recent study published in Health Affairs.

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Drug prices are soaring in 2019

Despite a major push from the Trump administration over the last few years to lower prescription drug costs, more than 3,400 drugs have seen price hikes during the first half of the year, according to a recent report.

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ProPublica report prompts hospital to examine practice of suing for unpaid bills

Waves of criticism against Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, a nonprofit hospital based in Memphis, Tennessee, have prompted the institution to examine its aggressive debt collection practices of suing low-income patients for unpaid medical debts, as detailed by a recent ProPublica and MLK50 report.

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Why some women with dense breasts may not need supplemental imaging

According to a new study published in JAMA Internal Medicine, providers should consider only discussing supplemental imaging with women with dense breasts if the patients are specifically at a higher risk for breast cancer.

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Seniors shell out way more for generic prescriptions over brands

Generic prescription drugs may not be the cost-saving alternative once thought under the current design of the Medicare Part D program, which gives away such heavy discounts for out-of-pocket costs for brand-name drugs that seniors are actually shelling out way more for generics, according to a study published in Health Affairs.

Joint replacement bundles saved $1K per patient

Bundled payments are helping lower overall healthcare costs, with joint replacement bundles saving about $1,000 per patient annually, according to a second annual report on the model from the Lewin Group.

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Sanford, UnityPoint to merge in $11B deal

Sanford Health and UnityPoint Health have agreed to merge to become an $11 billion nonprofit health system, making it among the 15 largest in the nation.

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Patient sues Google, UChicago for sharing patient data

The University of Chicago and Google are facing a class action lawsuit after one former patient at UChicago’s medical center accused the institution of sharing patient records and violating privacy rights.